Railway car end structure



t- 1941- c. E. CREDE 7 2,260,512

RAILWAY CAR END STRUCTURE Filed Dec. 20, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet l Oct. 28, 1941. c. E. CREDE 2,260,512

RAILWAY CAR END STRUCTURE Filed Dec. 20, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 nun"..- u .2

lnven Z01": Char/e5 E. freae Patented Oct. 28, 1941 RAILWAY CAR END STRUCTURE Charles E. Crede, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Standard Railway Equipment Manufacturing Company, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware Application December 20, 1939, Serial No. 310,101v

6 Claims.

The invention relates to railway housecars, such as box, automobile and refrigerator cars, and has for its object to provide very strong corner posts for usewith a car end wall made of relatively thin metallic sheets and provided with a plurality of substantially parallel horizontal corrugations, which corrugations form a plurality of beams between the opposite corner posts resist forces in any horizontal direction and to also secure the corner post to these structures so as to prevent it from rotating about its ver- =tical axis, or in other words, to resist torque.

A shifting load in a railway freight car exerts a horizontal force against the end wall and if the end wall deflects outwardly the middle portion of the corner posts are pulledinwardly, while the tops and bottoms, respectively, of the corner posts are held in position and prevented from coming toward each other by the end plate and end sill, respectively, thus causing a bowing or horizontal beam action on each corner post. Railway cars are frequently cornered in service; that is, some outside object is thrown against the corner post (or the car is thrown against the outside object) causing a horizontal force to be exerted toward the inside of the car.

Each corner post is also a strut of the overhanging portion of the side truss of the car; (that is, the portion beyond the body bolster) and as such must act as a column or compression member between the side plate and side sill of the car.

A further object is to associate the vertical marginalportion of the corrugated metallic end wall with a vertically disposed member to form a box structural beam and column between the roof structure and the underframe structure, which combined structure functions as'a corner post to resist the forces. heretofore mentioned. A further object is to stop the major corrugations (in the end wall sheet) short of or at the corner of the car an dto provide minor corrugations disposed between the ends of the major corrugations in overlapping relation therewith. The opposite ends of the minor corrugations extend around the corner of the car and are attached to the vertical member in the plane of the end wall and also preferably in the plane of the side wall. Therefore, any load imposed upon the end wall is carried by the major corrugations to the vertical margins of the sheet and transferred to the minor corrugations due to the overlapping relation between the major and minor corrugations. Since the minor corrugations are preferably attached to the vertical member in two places, the entire end wall functions as a restrained or semi-restrained beam.

A-further object is to secure one of the elements of the aforesaid box structural beam to the metallic side wall sheet so as to obtain cooperation therebetween to resist the various stresses to which a car is subjected in service.

A further object is to associate the corruga- .tions with the corner post so as to transmit at least a part of the stresses imposed thereon to the side wall sheet.

A further object is to form the vertical marginal portion of the corrugated end wall sheet with a lateral flange formed on a relatively large radius to form in effect an arch between the vertical margins of the inside vertical member to resist exterior horizontal forces. Such large radius would also enhance the appearance of the car.

Although the drawings show my invention used in the end wall of a railway car, it is obvious that it could be equally well adapted to use as a side wall, roof, side door or hopper door of a railway car.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 shows a side elevation of a railway car embodying one modification of my invention.

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of a portion of the carshown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view through the corner as indicated by line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section through the side wall of the car shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

Figs. 5 to 8 are views similar to Fig. 3 showing modified forms of corner construction.

The drawings show the usual parts of the car, such as the roof structure I (includingthe side plates 2; end plates 3 and roof proper 4; corner casting 5 and other associated elements); the underframe structure 6 (including the side sill 1; end sill 8; corner casting 9 and other associated elements) side wall sheet Ill; side lining I I; side lining nailing strip I2 and end lining l3- Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 show the vertical member 15 comprising angularly disposed arms I6 and I! provided with flanges [Band [9, respectively, and a corrugated end wall sheet, 20 formed with a flange 2| secured to the arm 16 by means of the flange I8 and the rivet 22. The flanges I8 and 2| are also preferably secured to the side wall sheet III by means of the rivet 22. The end wall sheet 20 is secured to the arm I'I by means of the flange I9 and the rivet 24. The flange 2| of'the end wall sheet and the flange I8 of the member I are secured to the side sill I by means of the rivets 26 (Fig. 1) and to the side plate 2 'bymeans of the rivet 27' (Fig. '1). The verticalmarginal portion 28 of the end wall sheet 20 and the flange I9 of the member I5.

are secured to the end sill 6 by the rivet 30 (see howeveninstead of passing through the corru- Fig. 2) and the corner casting 9. The vertical margin 28 of the end wall sheet 20 and the flange I9 of the member I5 are secured "to the roof; structure by the upper corner" casting"j,5..- (They upper part of the corrugated end wall sheet performs the functions of thelus'ual jhorizontalibeam secured to the tops of the corner posts and called an end plate.) The arms I6 and H of the vertical member I5 are Welded'to the: underframe structure,'.as shown at 33v (Fig. 4) and these; arms are also securely :welded ,to the. rooflstltuctll e, as shown at 34 (Fig. 4), thusgmeansare pro- Vided to securejthe arms Ifiellli of thev member I5 to'the roof structure :I and underframe structure 6, respectively, and-also means areprO-Vided to secure the fiange 2| of -th end wall sheet 20 and theadjacent marginal portion 28 of'the end wall sheet to the. roof structure I and -underframe structure 6, respectively. Also: means are provided to securev the arms-|6 and I! of the member .to'the flange'ZI of the end wall sheet and the body. of the" end wall sheet 20, respectively,--to forma box, structural element; In Other words,I have-:shownand described a corner post comprising a box structural element secured to the roof structure and underframe structure, respectively, to, provide a very strong beam therebetWeen-and toresist torques I The; end wall;sheet 20 is reinforced by a plurality of substantially ihorizontal major corrugations 40 which, in the modiflcationshown in Fig; 3, terminate andmergeinto the end wall sheet 20 adjacent the rivets 24. Minor corrugations 4| are disposed between the major corrugations 40 and spring from the end wall sheet 20 at 43. The; end, portions ,44' of the minor corrugations 4| overlap the end portions 46 of the major corrugations 40 ,so that a load imposed upon the major corrugations 40 is. transferred to the minor corrugations 4|. ,Each,flange,2| ofthe end wall sheet .20 is formed o a -c'urve of relatively large radius towform' an arch 41 between the arms ,Ib,--I'I-o1 theverticalmember I5. The minor corrugations. 4| extend around the arch 41 and merge atgdfl into; the,.flange'2l of the end wall sheet-25,, thereby 'stifiening said arch and forming a partially-restrained endwall.

Fig. 5 shows a, modified form of vertical member comprising angularlyzdisposed arms '57, 58, the arm 58 having a flange 59.- The arm 51 issecured preferably by the Welded material 60; to the-body part of the endwallsheet-fll near the mergence of the major corrugations 40.

The flange 2| of the endwall'sheet 2|] and the side wall sheet "III ar each secured, preferably by weldin to-the flange 59 in fla-twiserelation theretoand in abutting relation'to each other.

Fig. 6 shows a-modiflcation embodying'a-verr tical member I5- substantially the same asshown in'Fig. 3. -The wallsheetflange 2| is comprised of the. curved portion and a substantially flat edgeportion fil. 'Iheminor corrugations 4,I and m j ewm attm 0: re. dis d in. r p.-

ping relation as hereinabove described. However, the minor corrugations 4I extend completely around the curved portion 65 of the flange 2| and are secured to the arm I6, preferably by the rivets 69 and flange I8. The minor corrugations 4| merge into the flange 2| of the end wall sheet 20 (at '10) and the side wall sheet I 0 may be secured to the flange 2| by the rivets II.

In the modificationshown in :Fig. "7, the minor corrugations 4| extend arou'nd""the curved portion 65 and merge into the flat portion 6'! as pointed out in reference to Fig. 6. The rivets I5,

gated part of the flange 2| pass through the the vertical member I5.

The modiflcationshown in Fig. 8 is somewhat like .Fig. 3 except that the major corrugations IIlterminate and merge into the end wall sheet 2|) at agreater distance from the corner of the car so that nopart ofsa'id major corrugations issecuredstothe member Iliby the rivets 24.

.The accompanying drawings illustrate the preferred form of theinvention,;though it-istolbe understood 3that-theinvention is not limited to theexact details of constructionshowniand described, as it is obvious; that yariousgmodifl'cations thereof; within ,thescopeof the claims, will 0 o p rso s,skilledginjtheart. 7

Iclaim: f

1. In a railway carcornerstructure comprising a verticalmember,- a wall sheet comprising a body partformed with a-flange, means to secure the body part of the wall sheet tosaid member and means disposed inspaced relationitothe first mentioned means to secure the flangeof-the wall sheet to said member, the flange of the .wall sheetbeing formed on a curve-of relatively large radius to form an arch .substantially between theflrst'mentionedfand second mentioned means, a part of said member between said first mentioned and second mentioned means being spaced from said archto; form a box structural beam, said wall sheetbeing formed with a plurality of substantially horizontal corrugations which terminate and merge into the'uncurved part of said corrugations extending substantially around said arch.

2. In a railway car corner structure comprising a vertical member; comprising 'angularly disposed arms, a .wall'sheet comprising a bodypart formed with a flange, means, to secure the;body part'of the wall sheetto; one of, said'arms and means to secure the flange of the wall sheet to the other of said arms, theflange of the wall sheetbeing formedon a curve of relati-Velylarge radius to form an arch substantially between the .first mentioned-and second mentioned means,

thereby providing cooperation with said member abox structural'beam, said wall sheet being formed with aplurality of substantially horizon- .tal corrugations, which terminate and merge into the -uncurved partof saids'heet in overlapping relation with said first mentioned means ,and' a plurality of minor corrugations between the first mentioned corrugations and .in overlapping :relationtherewith, said minor corrugations extending substantially around said arch.

3. In a railway-car,-spacedapartverticalmembe sra'wall: ettcomprising'a body part formed with flanges on the opposite vertical edges, means to secure each of said flanges to one of said members and means disposed in spaced relation to the first mentioned means to secure the body part of the wall sheet to said members, said flanges being formed on curves of relatively large radius to form arches substantially between the first mentioned and second mentioned means, parts of said members being spaced from said arches to form box structural posts, said wall sheet formed with a plurality of substantially part of the wall sheet to said members, said flanges being formed on curves of relatively large radius to form arches substantially between first mentioned and second mentioned means, parts of said members being spaced from said arches to form box structural posts, said wall sheet formed with a plurality of substantially horizontal major corrugations extending substantially between said members and terminating in the uncurved body part in overlapping relation with said second mentioned means, said major corrugations being relatively wide at their central parts and tapering toward their opposite ends, and a plurality of minor corrugations between the end parts only of said major corrugations, said minor corrugations tapering toward the center of said sheet and merging thereinto between the tapered parts of said major corrugations, said minor corrugations extending substantially around said arch.

5. In a railway car corner structure comprising a vertical member, a wall sheet comprising a body part formed with a flange, means disposed adjacent said flange arranged to secure the body part of the wall sheet to said member and means disposed in spaced relation to the first mentioned means to secure the flange of the wall sheet to said member, the flange of the wall sheet being formed on a curve of relatively large radius to form an arch substantially between the first mentioned and second mentioned means, a part of said member between said first mentioned and second mentioned means being spaced from said a-rch to form a box structural beam, said wall sheet being formed with a plurality of substantially horizontal corrugations which terminate and merge into the uncurved part of said sheet between said flange and said first mentioned means, and a plurality of minor corrugations between the first mentioned corrugations and in overlapping relation therewith, said minor corrugations extending substantially around said arch.

6. In a railway car corner structure comprising a vertical member, a wall sheet comprising a body part formed with a flange, means disposed adjacent said flange arranged to secure the body part of the wall sheet to said member and means disposed in spaced relation'to the first mentioned means to secure the flange of the wall sheet to said member, the flange of the Wall sheet being formed on a curve of relatively large radius to form an arch substantially between the first mentioned and second mentioned means, a part of said member between said first mentioned and second mentioned means being spaced from said arch to form a box structural beam, said wall sheet being formed with a plurality of substantially horizontal corrugations which terminate and merge into the-uncurved part of said sheet between said flange and said first mentioned means, and a plurality of minor corrugations between the first mentioned corrugations and in overlapping relation therewith, said minor corrugations extending substantially around and merging into said arch.

CHARLES E. CREDE. 

